1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a radiation detecting cassette housing therein a radiation conversion panel for detecting a radiation that has passed through a subject and converting the detected radiation into radiation image information, and a medical system incorporating such a radiation detecting cassette.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the medical field, there have widely been used radiation image capturing apparatus which apply a radiation to a subject and guide the radiation that has passed through the subject to a radiation conversion panel so as to capture a radiation image. Known forms of the radiation conversion panel include a conventional radiation film for recording a radiation image by way of exposure, and a stimulable phosphor panel for storing a radiation energy representing a radiation image in a phosphor and reproducing the radiation image as stimulated light by applying stimulating light to the phosphor.
The radiation film with the recorded radiation image is supplied to a developing device to develop the radiation image, or the stimulable phosphor panel is supplied to a reading device to read the radiation image as a visible image.
In the operating room or the like, it is necessary to read out a recorded radiation image immediately from a radiation conversion panel after the radiation image is captured for the purpose of quickly and appropriately treating the patient. As a radiation conversion panel which meets such a requirement, there has been developed a radiation detector having solid-state detectors for converting a radiation directly into an electric signal or converting a radiation into visible light with a scintillator and then converting the visible light into an electric signal to read out a detected radiation image.
In a radiation image capturing system which incorporates a radiation conversion panel, the radiation image information detected by the radiation conversion panel is transmitted to a host computer. Technologies concerning such a radiation image capturing system are disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-172783, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-141240, and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2005-006979, for example.
According to the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-172783, image data detected by a radiation detecting cassette which houses a radiation detector therein are converted into a wireless signal and transferred to an external signal receiver by an image data transfer means. Therefore, the radiation detecting cassette requires no wiring, is independent of a controller, is capable of capturing images at a position remote from the controller, and can be used conveniently. The image data can also be transferred by a cable which can be used to supply electric power as well.
According to the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-141240, a radiation detecting cassette receives ordering information which instructs capturing of a radiation image from an external device, stores the received ordering information, and transmits an image signal output from a solid-state radiation detector in association with the stored ordering information to the external device. The disclosed radiation detecting cassette can greatly reduce the burden imposed on the radiological technician who captures the radiation image using the radiation detecting cassette.
According to the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2005-006969, a radiation image capturing apparatus includes a wired communication unit for transmitting and receiving digital image data and image capturing control signals with an external circuit through a cable, and a wireless communication unit for transmitting and receiving digital image data and image capturing control signals with the external circuit by wireless. Simply by attaching or detaching the cable, different data communication systems and power supply methods can selectively be used to put more emphasis on either a higher data transmission rate or an easier handing of the radiation image capturing apparatus.
Conventional medical systems incorporating a radiation detecting cassette which houses a radiation detector therein do not have any means for displaying or maintaining the status of the transmission of image data. Since the conventional medical systems give the user no indication as to whether the transmission of image data from the radiation detector to the host computer is in progress or has been completed, the user may accidentally remove the battery from the radiation detecting cassette or the operator of the host computer may initiate a next process while the image data are being transmitted. Accordingly, the storage of the image data into the host computer may be interrupted or otherwise unreliable.